Two-Dimensional Thinking in a Three-Dimensional World

Stabilizie a fence post before cementing it

Freelancers  on the prowl for pennies are renowned for their do-it-yourself advice. You could very likely build an entire house, foundation to roof, out of the "information" provided by freelancers at content farms like eHow.com and HubPages.com. It wouldn't meet code and would probably fall over after the first heavy rain, but you could do it...

Here's an example of the kind of advice offered up by freelancers, as provided by someone calling himself Dr E at Infobarrel. While the good doctor doesn't provide any info about that doctorate, he did manage to churn out more than 1,300 articles on the website, including a choice piece of crap titled "Fence Post Installation." We'll give him props for not telling you to pour dry concrete mix into your holes, but that's about it when you read his instructions for leveling your fence posts:

Place a level across the top of the post, if the bubble moves out of level, use a piece of wood to bang the appropriate side down until the bubble moves to level range. Place the level vertically against the fence post to check for plumb. If the bubble on the level moves out of level, push the fence post in the appropriate direction until the bubble lines up.  Do this immediately up pouring the concrete before the concrete sets. Once the concrete sets and hardens you will no longer be able to re-position the fence post.

Ummm, dude, that's not how you plumb a fence post. No one gives a rat's hiney whether the end of the post is "level" – a wise builder doesn't assume the cut end of a 4x4 is square with its sides, especially if it's treated lumber. You do care, however, whether the post is plumb both in the plane of the fence and perpendicular to that plane, and you use your level on two adjacent sides of the post to make sure it is.

Other lousy advice from Dr_E: 

1. The "standard width of a fence panel" is ten feet? No, it's not – it's eight feet, six feet if the fence is more than six feet tall. 
2. Cement in every post? That's not necessary, especially if it's not a privacy fence. Corners, gate posts, and every second or third post should be cemented (depending on wind load).
3. Pour concrete mix around the post and then plumb it? No, too easy to accidentally knock it out of plumb: you plumb the post first with stakes and pour the wet cement around it after it's been fixed in place.

Doc, you also missed the chance to sell one of the most useful tools in the history of the universe: a fence post level. For that omission alone you deserve to be awarded the honor of Dumbass of the Day. Your lousy advice just makes things worse.

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